Summary

In the 1840s, many Americans moved west for several reasons.

Economic problems were a major push factor. In 1837, the eastern US experienced a depression where banks collapsed, wages were cut by almost half, and many people lost their jobs. Farmers in the Midwest also struggled as crop prices dropped, causing financial ruin. In the East, land was expensive, and younger sons who didn’t inherit family farms couldn’t afford to buy new land. The population was growing rapidly, especially in places like Missouri, which felt overcrowded. Some people, like Mormons and former slaves, fled west to escape religious or racial persecution, while others were tired of laws and taxes in the East. The US government even encouraged people to move west, hoping settlers would drive out the British.

At the same time, there were many pull factors. Adventurers like the Mountain Men became guides, helping settlers find their way west. The fertile land in places like Oregon and California was perfect for farming, and there were stories about how wonderful life in the West could be. In 1843 Marcus Whitman’s offer to show people the way was the trigger to the Great Oregon Migration. Other people were drawn by the sense of adventure, and by the hope of wealth, fame and status, and the discovery of gold attracted 80,000 migrants to California in 1849.

Behind these rational considerations, however lay an emotional motivation – the mission of America's 'manifest destiny' and the dream of something better ‘out west’.

Why did Americans move west in such great numbers in the 1840s?

Ultimately, there were as many reasons for going west as there were people going west, because each migrant had their own reasons for doing so, but historians have suggested a number of general reasons why Americans moved west in the 1840s:

There were a number of ‘push’ factors encouraging a feeling in people’s minds that they could do better if they left and moved west,

In 1837, the eastern United States was struck by an economic depression that left banks in ruins, wages slashed by 40 percent, and unemployment soaring. At the same time, an agricultural depression hit the Midwest in the 1840s, causing prices for wheat and corn to plummet, which led farmers in the Mississippi Valley to face financial ruin. These hardships forced many to look for new opportunities, as the East offered few prospects for those struggling to make ends meet. For younger sons who would not inherit the family farm, the East presented another obstacle: land was too expensive, making it difficult for them to start their own farms – giving them a motive to move west, looking for better opportunities.

A feeling of overcrowding also became a concern for some, particularly in the Mississippi Valley, where the population of Missouri exploded from 14,000 in 1830 to 353,000 by 1840. Farmers began to feel the pressure of living in more densely populated areas, prompting them to seek more open, less crowded spaces out west.

Religious and racial persecution also pushed people westward. The Mormons, for example, faced hostility for their beliefs, and former slaves sought to escape the oppression and discrimination they still experienced in the East. For these groups, the West represented a place where they could live free from the persecution they had endured. Moreover, the structure of government in the East, with its laws and taxation, made the West seem appealing to those who craved more freedom from regulation.

FFinally, the US government was actively trying to persuade people to move west. It printed thousands of copies of the Oregon Trail to encourage settlers to move to Oregon, where they hoped American settlers would eventually drive out the British, further fuelling the westward migration.

At the same time, ‘pull’ factors were attracting Americans towards the West. ‘Mountain Men’ such as James Bridger, Kit Carson, and James Beckwourth – who been attracted west themselves in the 1820s and 1830s to trap beavers – became trail guides when the beaver fur trade had dried up by the late 1830s; giving settlers confidence to venture into the unknown.

It was perhaps the promise of fertile farmland that attracted most settlers. Both California and Oregon had good soil and climate, making them ideal locations for farming. In 1843, Senator Lewis Linn’s Oregon Bill passed in the Senate, promising a square mile of free land to anyone over 18 who lived in Oregon for five years an making the prospect of moving west even more enticing to land-hungry easterners.

Propaganda stories added to this appeal, with tales of how wonderful the West was being spread by missionaries, adventurers, and those looking to profit from the influx of new settlers. Some adventurers, like Lansford W. Hastings, even had ambitions of establishing their own states in the West.

The potential for adventure and a fresh start also drew people west, as the journey itself was full of excitement and danger – an attractive thing for young people.

The Great Oregon Migration of 1843 was undoubtedly kick-started by Marcus Whitman, a missionary who had established a mission in Walla Walla in Oregon. On a visit east in 1843, passing through Independence, Missouri, he offered to guide a wagon train to Oregon, offering yet another reason for Americans to head west; his offer was taken up by 875 people. Similarly, the discovery of gold in California, triggered a gold rush in 1849 of 80,000 hopeful prospectors eager to strike it rich, making the West seem like a land of endless opportunities.

However, there was something more going on in the 1840s than a rational calculation of possible advantage. Deciding to give up everything and embark on a journey of 1,800 miles, with a 10% death rate, into a wilderness, is not like weighing up the pros and cons of going on holiday to Blackpool. The bright yellow sunset in Emanuel Leutze’s painting Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way, gives us a clue as to the emotional motivation behind the move west. It was a vision – tied in with the feeling of Americans' 'manifest destiny' – of individual purpose and a dream, no doubt laced will illusion and wishful thinking, that ‘out there’ a better life was calling, which made it worth the struggles, hardships and tragedy we see in the rest of the painting.